NEW YORK -- The amusement park company Six Flags says it has filed for bankruptcy.

The New York-based operator of 20 theme parks in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, including Six Flags Great America in north suburban Gurnee, said Saturday that the filing in a federal bankruptcy court in Delaware is part of its plan to reorganize and shed $1.8 billion worth of debt.

Company CEO Mark Shapiro said the move won't affect the day-to-day operations of the parks.

Six Flags said it actually had a great year in 2008. It saw 25 million visitors and posted record revenues.

However, it said it needed to do something about its crushing debt load.

An earlier plan to work out an out-of-court deal with creditors wasn't successful.

Mark Shapiro, the CEO of Six Flags, is a Tribune Company board member.